Fortress Wahnen
)Capcom (February 22, 2014). Strider Hiryu Visual Chronicle (Japanese). Pg. 41 |preceded= Neo Hong Kong City |followed= Antarctica Research Lab |sub-bosses= Skewer Cannon Metall Hengst Sturmgeschutz V Dullahan, Armored Guard |bosses= Herzog Schlange, Aluminium Hydra }} Fortress Wahnen ( ) is the second stage in Strider 2. The stage's official full name is "Invade and attack the armed fortress" ( , lit. Armed Fortress Invasion). The fortress's name comes from the German word "wahnen", which translates roughly into "delusion". Story Fortress Wahnen was originally an ancient castle located in the "Niedersachsen" (Lower Saxony) region in Germany. Once obtained by the excentric scientist Herzog Schlange, he has it rebuilt extensively with modern technology, transforming the ancient castle into an "anachronic fortress" where old and new technology mixes togetherCapcom (1999). Strider Hiryu 2 Pamphlet (Japanese).. Fortress Wahnen became Schlange's base of operations, from where he provides Grandmaster Meio's allies with his mechanical creations, in an effort to make an exhibit of his country. The fortress also houses Schlange's personal army formed by trained soldiers, old-fashioned armored knights, military vehicles and bizarre autonomous machines and weaponry of his own making. Following his battle in Neo Hong Kong City, Hiryu tracks down the origin of the "distorted technology" into this fortressCapcom (December 1999, Arcade). Strider Hiryu 2 (Japanese). Stage 2 Briefing, and infiltrates it looking for clues about Schlange's purposes. Eventually reaching the secret basement beneath the fortress, Hiryu is confronted by Schlange and his Aluminium Hydra. After their defeat in battle, an injured Schlange can only call Hiryu a fool for challenging their Lord while the Strider slowly approaches him for the final strike. Layout Fortress Wahnen Outer Wall ( ) Known as "The outside area of Fortress Wahnen" in the English script. A small walled yard with a few buildings, found in the outside perimeter of the castle itself, beneath the castle's moat. Hiryu starts outside one of the walls, which he must climb up in order to enter. From this point extends a small area with a large building in its center, which can be traveled through two routes: either jump across to reach the rooftops, or drop below and continue through land until reaching a small yard. There's a switch in the lower path, however, which once stepped activates a trap, blocking the path and forcing Hiryu to backtrack. Both areas lead to a large tower in the second half of the building. The area is crowded by Fortress Guards, who run back and forth trying to attack or shoot at Hiryu. After reaching the top of the tower, Hiryu notices the Skewer Cannon and slowly walks down to face it. Fortress Wahnen Armory ( ) Known as "The weapon storage area of Fortress Wahnen" in the English script. A small armory right next to the previous area which houses vehicles used by Schlange's army, including two tanks labeled S-21 and T43b and a few mechanical horses visible in the background. Piles of breakable boxes and metal barrels can be seen at each end of the room, which can be destroyed to uncover hidden items. In this room Hiryu is confronted by the Knight Leader riding Metall Hengst. Fortress Wahnen Connecting Bridge ( ) Known as "The bridge of Fortress Wahnen" in the English script. A long bridge made of metal and stone sections, connecting the outer areas to the fortress itself. The bridge is built over the castle's moat, and features several ascending inclines on its length. Several breakable boxes stand as obstacles on the path, as well as Fortress Guards and the ocassional ground mine. In this place Hiryu is pursued by the Pulverizer Armored Vehicle T-54 as it attempts to run him over. The armored vehicle destroys the stone parts of the bridge as it passes over them, leaving Hiryu no other choice but to run ahead until the end of the bridge, separated by a jump from the fortress' entrance. While Hiryu easily crosses over this chasm, the T-54 simply drives out to a watery grave. After that, Hiryu must destroy the Sturmgeschutz V in order to cross the entrance into Fortress Wahnen. Fortress Wahnen Prison Tower ( ) Known as "The prison tower of Fortress Wahnen" in the English script. One of the four towers in Fortress Wahnen housing a dungeon inside. The Alchemist lurks in this area, using the prisoners trapped there for his own experiments. The starting area is a long hall with machinery and gears in its background. A single metal pipe runs above the area, installed with several burners which fire a stream of flames downwards. The path is defended by Modified Guillotines, and includes a trap door at the very beginning. Following this area is the prison tower itself. This area is a long ascent upwards across several cell blocks, whose metal doors are visible in the background. The whole area is protected by the medieval-styled Armored Guards, found standing in the metal platforms and balconies found across the tower. The Alchemist awaits at the top of the ceiling, where he summons the Dullahan to eliminate Hiryu. Fortress Wahnen Inner Quarters ( ) Known as "The walls of Fortress Wahnen" in the English script. The fortress' largest area as it goes throughout the walls and towers surrounding the inner quarters of the fortress. Hiryu starts out climbing through one of the towers while avoiding electric emitters, taking on enemies in front of a two-barreled cannon in its top and then descending into a nearby wall. This area is a large empty space with Floating Mines and more enemy soldiers. This leads into the second tower, where fireballs constantly fall from the sky, marked by two yellow crosshairs indicating where they will land. There's a hidden area going around the second tower, blocked by electric emitters and which leads into a path with several hidden Score Items. The final stretch is another long path reaching the final tower, which is protected by more electric emitters and the Search Lantern. Crossing over the tower leads into the exit, protected by the Armored Elite Guard. Fortress Wahnen Underground Cave ( ) Known as "The dungeon of Fortress Wahnen" in the English script. A rather large cavern found beneath the fortress, where Herzog Schlange awaits. This area is an underground lake with a simple circular stone walkway built over it, surrounding the Aluminium Hydra, Schlange's most powerful creation. Hiryu drops from the entrance on top, and is greeted by Schlange as he commands his Hydra and some Light Armored Guards to kill him. At one side of the cavern, in the background, stand what appears to be a large pipe organ, possibly meant to be played by Schlange during the battle. Stage Enemies Enemies present in this stage include: * Fortress Guard (Scenes 1, 2, 3 and 5) * Knight (Scenes 1 and 3) * Iron Ball Guardian (Scene 1*) * Skewer Cannon (Scene 1 Boss) * Metall Hengst (Scene 2 Boss) * T-54 (Scene 3) * Ground Mines (Scene 3*) * Spike Bomb Machine (Scene 3*) -Arcade version only- * Sturmgeschutz V (Scene 3 Boss) * Armored Guard (Scenes 4, 5 and 6) * Modified Guillotine (Scene 4) * Rasenmäher (Scene 4) * Floating Mines (Scenes 4* and 5) * The Alchemist (Scene 4) * Dullahan (Scene 4 Boss) * Search Lantern (Scene 5) * Armored Guard (Scene 5 Boss) * Aluminium Hydra (Scene 6 Boss) * Herzog Schlange (Scene 6 Boss) Note: Scenes marked with an asterisk indicate the enemy only appears during the harder stage layouts, only accessed if the stage is not played first. Gallery Fortresswahnen_map.png|Map display location Strider2_cypherslash.png|Outer Wall Fortresswahnen_armory.png|Armory Fortresswahnen_bridge.png|Connecting Bridge Fortresswahnen_tower.png|Prison Tower Fortresswahnen_quarters.png|Inner Quarters Aluminium_hydra.png|Underground Cavern Str2_wahnen_concept.png|Concept art Str2 bridge concept.png|Connecting Bridge concept art Trivia * Fortress Wahnen was apparently the first stage to be worked on, and the first stage to be playable during the game's showings at the 1999 E3 and Tokyo Game Show events. The build used during E3 ended up stored in the programmer's hard disk as a "memorial" of the difficulties the team had during its development.Yamamoto, Setsuo; Yoneda, Etsuko (January 21, 2000). Strider Hiryû 2 Official Soundtrack. CD. Suleputer, CPCA-1035. Liner Notes, pg. 3-4. * The map displayed in the beginning is actually that of Vancouver, Canada. References Category:Locations